Craig Pospisil

Tank was 1/4 full of diesel, stopped by station and put in 0.21 gallons of premium unleaded gas before realizing mistake and stopping gas flow. Continued to fill up 24.6 gallon tank with diesel, then drove (yes, I know that was dumb) 1.7 miles to home, where the SUV now sits.

Given I have less than 1% gas in the tank, is it safe to continue driving or should I have the dealer pick up the vehicle, drain the tank, and take other precautions. Concerned that the dealer could go overboard.

2012 ML350 Bluetec, 63,000 miles, out of warranty.

Carsy

So long as it was well mixed I would think you have a good chance all will be well but for piece of mind I would :-

Syphon out as much from the tank & refill.

Before starting ,just with the ignition key on, pump out what is in the fuel lines & filter by opening a suitable drain in the fuel system.

I am interested to hear what the experts say.

Micah / AF1 Rac

No worries, it will be fine. My OM648 has been a bit of an omnivore over the last 174,000 miles. Small doses of waste gasoline, leaded and unleaded from my motorcycle shop, acetone, probably other stuff. I'm not by any stretch recommending doing this on purpose to your car, just admitting I hate wasting fuels and I've done it on purpose. JetA from local airport, leftover kerosene...in my case I'm not going to be too upset when eventually I "need" to get a set of those upgraded AMG injectors, but I'm really in no rush. I'm guessing some of the more common fuel additives sold over the counter are far worse for motors, I've seen some seriously stupid fuel additive issues in a quarter century of working on racing bikes.

marc hanna

It'll be fine. My old VW used to run with up to 30% gasoline. If you're still concerned, throw in a little extra diesel fuel conditioner.

Glyn M Ruck

Benz has always permitted maximum 10% gasoline in diesel for very cold weather. 1% will do no harm. However, It depends on diesel viscosity & lubricity. Low viscosity, low lubricity diesel from coal gasification/liquifaction/GTL plants like Sasol's process are a lot less tolerant of gasoline in the mix & with modern high pressure systems with amplifier injectors & can lead to fuel system component seizure.

marc hanna

Fortunately, coal gasification is pretty rare, especially considering the low price of crude right now, so not likely to encounter any at the pump.

Glyn M Ruck

Unless you live in South Africa or China etc. This is an international forum.

marc hanna

Yes, I've heard there are a few commercial scale plants in those regions; but the production is still a relatively small percentage compared to conventional processes, is it not?

Glyn M Ruck

Sasol Secunda produces 160,000 barrels per day of finished product from Jet fuel to Gasoline to Diesel. About 25% of the county's total offtake. Supplies the entire inland highveld area while conventional refineries supply all coastal areas & Marine. Sasol's other plant's here have been diverted away from fuel to GTL for high quality base oils for lubricants. China started building 50 plants in 2014.

marc hanna

This process ensures that we will likely never run out Gasoline and Diesel. I'm not sure it will compete long-term against renewables, but time will tell.

At any rate, the OP is safe. And likely is the US given the units of measurement the pumps use.

GLKpaul

Its no issue... Throw in some conditioner for good measure as per Marc..